16 Best Dividend Stocks with Rising Payouts

4. Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 88

Payout Ratio (TTM): 27.10%

On February 10, Evercore ISI analyst Greg Melich raised his price recommendation on Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) to $1,050 from $1,025. The analyst reiterated an Outperform rating on the shares.

More recently, on February 20, Citi analyst Steven Zaccone increased his price objective on COST to $1,000 from $990 while keeping a Neutral rating. He noted that Costco delivered a modest beat in same-store sales and earnings during fiscal Q2.

The company also reported strong sales momentum. Net sales for January 2026 reached $21.33 billion, up 9.3% from a year earlier. Comparable sales rose 7.5% after adjusting for gas prices and currency changes. One standout was e-commerce. Online sales jumped more than 34% during the holiday period. That kind of growth is notable for a retailer that still generates most of its revenue through physical warehouse locations.

Costco’s membership model continues to play a central role in its performance. In the first quarter of fiscal 2026, membership fee income increased 14% to $1.329 billion. The total number of paid members reached 81.4 million, up 5.2%. Executive memberships, which represent the company’s highest-value tier, grew 9.1% to 39.7 million.

Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) operates membership-based warehouse stores and e-commerce platforms. It offers a range of branded and private-label products across multiple categories. The company sources most of its merchandise directly from suppliers and distributes it through consolidation depots or directly to its warehouse locations.